VIDEO: One of the fastest ways to report an emergency dates back to the 1800’s, and one Midstate community still has the system in service. The Borough of Hanover passed an ordinance to install Gamewell fire alarm boxes in 1911. Each box has a number. When the handle on one is pulled during an emergency, a circuit is broken, bells ring within the box, and the fire department receives a telegraph that lets them know which box was triggered. Hanover Area Fire and Rescue Chief Anthony Clousher says the system offered reassurance during the recent statewide 911 outage, but he’s worried not everyone knows the older looking boxes still work. “Had there been an incident in Hanover or Penn Township, where there’s a box available and they activate the box, we’re not relying on that 911 system in any way, shape or form,” says Chief Clousher. The Gamewell system alerts firefighters to an emergency in seconds.
